What is Kabbalah?
Kabbalah is primarily a mystical method of reading Jewish texts and practicing Jewish law, but Kabbalah also contains a messianic thread, incorporating the idea of a salvific God and a messiah figure. Messianism has existed as a religious subculture from the early rabbinic period and given rise to numerous messianic movements. Messianic spirituality has remained a stream of Jewish tradition ever since.
Jewish mysticism and messianism are therefore related traditions with deep roots in the Jewish experience. Their most important expressions emerged in the late medieval period of Jewish history: the Spanish Kabbalah of 16th century Spain and Palestine, the Shabbatean Messianism of the 17th century Ottoman empire, and the Hasidic movement of 18th century Poland and Russia.
Although Kabbalah’s mystic tradition reaches back as far as the early rabbinic period, Kabbalah’s central book, The Zohar, was written by Moses de Leon of Castille, Spain in 1286.
Babylonian Roots
Following the division of Israel and the Assyrian captivity of the northern tribes, the southern kingdom of Judah adopted the pagan traditions of the heathen nation of ancient Babylon. These traditions, with their associated rituals which included human sacrifice, provoked God to judge the southern kingdom, which judgment the prophet Jeremiah forewarned the Jews for a period of forty years, to no avail.
During the Babylonian captivity, the prophet Ezekiel continued to reprove Judah for its apostasy from the God of Israel and their love affair with Babylon. Note, in the following passage, the Jews’ admiration for the images of rich, brightly attired Babylonian princes, which evoke visual images of the elegant processions of the princes of the Roman Catholic Church attired in their rich and colorful vestments:
“…[Jerusalem] increased her whoredoms: for when she saw men pourtrayed upon the wall, the images of the Chaldeans pourtrayed with vermilion, Girded with girdles upon their loins, exceeding in dyed attire upon their heads, all of them princes to look to, after the manner of the Babylonians of Chaldea, the land of their nativity: And as soon as she saw them with her eyes, she doted upon them, and sent messengers unto them into Chaldea. And the Babylonians came to her into the bed of love, and they defiled her with their whoredom, and she was polluted with them, and her mind was alienated from them. So she discovered her whoredoms, and discovered her nakedness: then my mind was alienated from her…” (Ezek.23:14-18)
Moreover, as Matthew Henry noted in his commentary on this passage, the kingdom of Judah patterned its own worship after the pomp and pageantry of the Babylonians with whom they had become enamored:
“Thus she increased her whoredoms; she fell in love, fell in league, with the Chaldeans. Hezekiah himself was faulty this way when he was proud of the court which the king of Babylon made to him and complimented his ambassadors with the sight of all his treasures, Isa. 39:2. And the humour increased (v. 14); she doted upon the pictures of the Babylonian captains (v. 15, 16), joined in alliance with that kingdom, invited them to come and settle in Jerusalem, that they might refine the genius of the Jewish nation and make it more polite; nay, they sent for patterns of their images, altars, and temples, and made use of them in their worship. Thus was she polluted with her whoredoms (v. 17), and thereby she discovered her own whoredom (v. 18), her own strong inclination to idolatry.”
Isaac Luria: Father of Contemporary Kabbalah
Of all the rabbis referenced in Shapira's book, none has been more influential in the history and development of Kabbalah than Isaac Luria, also known as the “Ari” or the “lion.” Born in Jerusalem in 1534, he was and is still known by his disciples as the master Kabbalist. His method of Kabbalah – Lurianic Kabbalah – continues to be the predominant form of Kabbalah followed by the rabbis today, as confirmed by Shapira: “…Rabbi Yitzhak Luria, who was the founding rabbi of the Pardes method…Many considered him the founder of the “Torah of Kabbalah…He is considered the father of contemporary Kabbalah.”
“One of the greatest kabbalists of all times, he founded a new school in Kabbalah – the so-called “Lurianic Kabbalah” – which is the basis of almost all mystical works that followed him… undisputedly the greatest practitioner and expounder of Kabbalah since Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, author of the Zohar…
Theosophy & Kabbalah: A Connection
Theosophy spends a great deal of time with the Kabbalah (caballa/quabalah), because the books of the Kabbalah pretend to be about Jewish History. The premise of those who study the Kabbalah is that they are reading an ancient series of books, usually containing HIDDEN knowledge about the Bible, and about the Universe.
The problem is - that is not ACTUALLY what the Kabbalah is doing. The system of the Kabbalah claims to be based on Jewish Mysticism. But we have to look at that claim very closely. Some people who hear the term "Jewish Mysticism" think that this applies to Jewish Spirituality that is derived FROM the Old Testament, from the Bible. That is NOT true ! It is confusing because books About the Kabbalah are written in a style which is confusing, designed to lead readers to think that they are studying DEEP things, when the only event that is truly taking place - is that readers [of books about the Kabbalah] are being deceived.
The Kabbalah is based on a series of Visions delivered to a person in a Trance. To Christians, THAT should be raising alarm bells. The Kabbalah is based on a series of books, that are called THE ZOHAR. This is usually published in 4 to 6 volumes. It claims to be a revelation from the God of the Old Testament. The implications are immense ! According to those involved in the Kabbalah (and there are many), the Zohar is essentially A commentary on the Old Testament, but it was written by people who are clearly SPIRITUALISTS: A Spiritualist is a person who consults the dead, and who consults familiar spirits. In other words, the Zohar - which is what the Kabbalah is based on - is actually a work of the Occult.
Kabbalah in Europe
The Kabbalah became popularized in Europe through Western occultists who used it for magical purposes. Among them were Cornelius Agrippa, A. E. Waite, Eliphas Levi, and S. L. MacGregor Mathers, author of Kabbala Unveiled.
Mathers divides the Kabbalah into four aspects.
A. The practical Kabbalah, which deals with talismanic and ceremonial magic. This is the tradition that became popular in Europe.
B. The literal Kabbalah, which deals with the keys to the unveiling of the hidden meanings of the scriptures. These are divided into:
i. Gematria, which is the assigning of specific numbers to the different letters of the Hebrew alphabet. Thus, R=200, V=6, etc. Where words have the same total sum, it means that they are connected with each other. For example, the name of the angel Metatron totals to 314, while that of the Deity, Shaddai, is also 314. It means that one is symbolical of the other.
ii. Notaricon: This method makes use of the numbers of the first letters of the words of a sentence, and again identifying their equivalents. Thus it has two versions. The first is that every letter of a word can be expanded into a sentence. For example: the first word of Genesis, BRAShITh, Berashith, “in the beginning,” expands into six Hebrew words which means, “In the beginning the Elohim saw that Israel would accept the law.” The second version is the opposite of the first — the first letters of a sentence represent a word.
iii. Temura: the third method is a complex permutation of letters and their equivalent numbers according to a table.
In addition to these three methods, the Kabbalists also give significance to the particular shape of each Hebrew letter, particularly when it is found in the end or middle of a word.
C. Unwritten Kabbalah. This is the knowledge never put down in writing but transmitted from teacher to disciple.
D. Dogmatic Kabbalah. These are the doctrines which are found in the various well known books in kabbalistic literature, such as Sefer Yetzirah and Zohar.
Freemasonry Connection
Many Christians are unaware that Freemasonry is a branch extending from the tree of kabbalistic Judaism and that the name Abaddon is considered a sacred name in Freemasonry.
What is not widely understood is that the root of every New Age concept and term can be traced to ancient Babylonian mysticism and kabbalistic writings, especially in the area of occult science. The same can be said of Freemasonry with its rites, initiations, sacred passwords and symbols.
Johannes Buxtorf, known in the 16th century as the “Master of the Rabbis,” wrote the Lexicon of the Talmud in which he “defines the Kabbalah to be a secret science, which treats in a mystical and enigmatical manner of things divine, angelical, theological, celestial, and metaphysical; the subjects being enveloped in striking symbols and secret modes of teaching. Much use is made of it in the advanced degrees, and entire Rites have been constructed on its principles. Hence it [Kabbalah] demands a place in any general work on Freemasonry.” 101
The role of Freemasonry and its connection to Kabbalah cannot be underestimated as a major contributor in the global initiation of the masses. Long before the current flood of mysticism into the Church, New Age occultist and channeler of demons, Alice Bailey, wrote about the future research into atomic particles and its impact on the basic doctrines of Christianity, as science would prove the unity and oneness of mankind and all creation. Her blueprint image of the Hierarchy of ascended masters and their lodge on the spiritual plane is just another configuration of the Sefirot tree of Kabbalah which is now breaking through the veil to the world we live in.
Kabbalah Translated to English
The Kabbalah was Not translated for English Speaking audiences until the late 1800s.
1. Eliphas Levi
2. MacGregor Mathers
3. H.P. Blavatsky
4. A.E. Waite
These are the main authors of books about the Kabbalah.
Eliphas Levi is the author who led the Occult Revival of the 1800s, that revived Satanism and Luciferianism. He wrote many books about Ritual Black Magic and how to have contact with Demonic Spirits...because he was seeking them.
MacGregor Mathers goes by several names. He is one of the Three founders of the Occult Society - known as the society of the Golden Dawn. This is a demonic society, not because we say so, but because THEY say so. This is one of the occult societies that covets demonic possession. Christians would consider their teachings to be Satanic. MacGregor Mathers is also one of the mentors of the Great Satanist Aleister Crowley. The first Translation of the Kabbalah into English was by MacGregor Mathers. (He lived in the U.K. for most of his life, where he recruited a lot of the elites into his occult Golden Dawn society).
H.P. Blavatsky is the founder of Theosophy. This is the view that Lucifer is truly an angel of light and he is the one who deserves our worship and allegiance. Blavatsky came from an occult family, and was already a Medium when she was a teenager. She sought out evil and the company of demonic spirits all of her life. She wrote many books about the occult. She believed that the Jews - through books like the Kabbalah - had stolen books of black magic that had previously come from the Chaldeans. She denied that Jesus was the Christ. She also denied that salvation could come through Jesus Christ. She remained extremely hostile to Jehovah/Yahweh - the God of the Jews.
A.E. Waite is an occult author. He played a large role in helping many occult authors in the early 1900s. He was involved in Many occult societies including the Golden Dawn.
Kabbalah & Hassidism
In the late 18th century, Hasidism was founded in Eastern Europe partially as a response to Shabbateanism. The founder of the movement, Israel Baal Shem Tov (“master of the good name”), was an itinerant preacher and mystic who reinterpreted the Lurianic Kabbalah within more acceptable bounds. The Baal Shem Tov and his disciples created a new Jewish religious culture in which prayerful communion was exalted over talmudic study, spiritual intention over ritual detail, and joy over melancholy. Hasidism, from the Hebrew word hasid (pious follower), was a movement of the common folk, stressing populism and social welfare at a time when the official Eastern European Jewish community, the kehillah, was corrupt and declining. The Hasidic community was headed by a new type of rabbinic leader, the tzaddik or rebbe, who led by personal example, storytelling, and moral authority. Certain Hasidic leaders, such as the late Lubavitcher Rebbe (1902-1994), are claimed by some of their followers to be the messiah.
The mystical tendency in Judaism continues to resist the rationalist bias of modernity, with the perseverance of Hasidism today and recent resurgences of Jewish spirituality. The messianic aspect of the kabbalistic tradition has become part of modern Jewish life through the deep conviction that history, exile, and personhood have meaning and direction; contemporary Judaism’s relationship with Israel can be viewed as representing a fulfillment of messianic hope. Taken together, the kabbalistic idea of tikkun olam (repairing the broken elements of holiness in the world) finds its modern voice in Jewish movements of political, economic, and social change and justice. Due in part to the influence of these mystical and messianic traditions, Jews joined cultural revolutionary movements of the 19th century in force. Today, many of the modern-day radicals who have attempted to fix the world have been Jews, from Karl Marx and Leon Trotsky to Emma Goldman and Abbie Hoffman.
Kabbalah Symbols
